Book contents
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Map
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- Glossary
- Politicians, officials and personalities
- Introduction
- 1 The evolution of British Cold War policy, 1945–1964
- 2 The UK and East-West relations, 1964–1965
- 3 The Wilson government and the Vietnam War, 1965–1968
- 4 British strategy and defence policy, 1964–1968
- 5 Détente, trade and espionage, 1966–1968
- 6 The ‘Prague Spring’ and its aftermath, 1968–1970
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index
Conclusion
Published online by Cambridge University Press: 12 September 2012
- Frontmatter
- Contents
- Map
- Acknowledgements
- Abbreviations
- Glossary
- Politicians, officials and personalities
- Introduction
- 1 The evolution of British Cold War policy, 1945–1964
- 2 The UK and East-West relations, 1964–1965
- 3 The Wilson government and the Vietnam War, 1965–1968
- 4 British strategy and defence policy, 1964–1968
- 5 Détente, trade and espionage, 1966–1968
- 6 The ‘Prague Spring’ and its aftermath, 1968–1970
- Conclusion
- Bibliography
- Index
Summary
The Conservative government of 1970–4 placed less emphasis on Anglo- Soviet relations than its Labour predecessor. The Foreign Secretary, Douglas- Home, had earlier publicly drawn adverse comparisons between British decolonisation in Africa and Asia and Soviet domination over Eastern Europe, implying that the USSR was a more ‘imperialist’ power than the UK. Edward Heath was instinctively suspicious of Soviet protestations of goodwill, and was contemptuous of the ‘bicycle race’ other Western countries undertook to mend fences with the USSR after the Czechoslovak crisis. As prime minister, Heath oversaw the mass expulsion of 105 KGB officers from the Soviet embassy and trade delegation in September 1971, known as Operation Foot by the FCO. The pretext for Foot was provided by a KGB defector, Oleg Lyalin, who informed his MI5 handlers of the Soviet embassy's preparations for sabotage operations in Britain in the event of a major East-West crisis or war; the expulsions crippled KGB activity in the UK throughout the remainder of the Cold War. A furious Gromyko accused the British government of whipping up an artificial espionage scandal in order to hamper détente. While this pronouncement was typical of the USSR's propaganda, the Soviet Foreign Minister's claims contained an element of accuracy. Lyalin's defection provided the catalyst for measures to cut the Soviet diplomatic and KGB presence, a step which the FCO, MI5, Douglas- Home and Heath had long considered overdue.
- Type
- Chapter
- Information
- Harold Wilson's Cold WarThe Labour Government and East-West Politics, 1964–1970, pp. 164 - 178Publisher: Boydell & BrewerPrint publication year: 2009